Bulford Kiwi
Encyclopedia
Kiwi
Kiwi are flightless birds endemic to New Zealand, in the genus Apteryx and family Apterygidae.At around the size of a domestic chicken, kiwi are by far the smallest living ratites and lay the largest egg in relation to their body size of any species of bird in the world...
carved in the chalk
Chalk
Chalk is a soft, white, porous sedimentary rock, a form of limestone composed of the mineral calcite. Calcite is calcium carbonate or CaCO3. It forms under reasonably deep marine conditions from the gradual accumulation of minute calcite plates shed from micro-organisms called coccolithophores....
on Beacon Hill
Beacon Hill
Beacon Hill is a name shared by many hills, suburbs, villages and other places around the world. Many are so called because they were historically the site of a warning beacon. Others are named after other places of the same name.-In the United Kingdom:...
above the then-military town of Bulford
Bulford
Bulford is a village and civil parish in Wiltshire, England, close to Salisbury Plain. According to the 2001 census the parish had a population of 4,698.The name is derived from the Old English bulut ieg ford meaning 'ragged robin island ford'....
on the Salisbury Plain
Salisbury Plain
Salisbury Plain is a chalk plateau in central southern England covering . It is part of the Southern England Chalk Formation and largely lies within the county of Wiltshire, with a little in Hampshire. The plain is famous for its rich archaeology, including Stonehenge, one of England's best known...
in Wiltshire
Wiltshire
Wiltshire is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is landlocked and borders the counties of Dorset, Somerset, Hampshire, Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire. It contains the unitary authority of Swindon and covers...
. It was created by New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
soldiers awaiting repatriation following the end of World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
.
It is also one of the few hill figure
Hill figure
A hill figure is a large visual representation created by cutting into a steep hillside and revealing the underlying geology. It is a type of geoglyph usually designed to be seen from afar rather than above. In some cases trenches are dug and rubble made from material brighter than the natural...
s in Wiltshire
Wiltshire
Wiltshire is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is landlocked and borders the counties of Dorset, Somerset, Hampshire, Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire. It contains the unitary authority of Swindon and covers...
not to be either a white horse or a military badge.
History
The Kiwi was constructed on Beacon Hill overlooking the Sling CampSling camp
Sling Camp was a World War I camp occupied by New Zealand soldiers beside the then-military town of Bulford on the Salisbury Plain in Wiltshire.-History:...
(now gone), part of Bulford Camp
Bulford Camp
Bulford Camp is a military camp on the Salisbury Plain in Wiltshire, England.The modern day Bulford Camp is two camps separated by Marlborough Road. The camp on the eastern side contains Picton Barracks housing the headquarters of 3rd Division and Kiwi Barracks houses the 4th Battalion The Rifles...
, during the occupation of the Camp by New Zealand troops since June 1916.
After the war was over, the troops were eager to return home, but no troop ships were available. In the wake of riots by disaffected New Zealanders, officers decided that the troops should be kept busy carving an enormous Kiwi
Kiwi
Kiwi are flightless birds endemic to New Zealand, in the genus Apteryx and family Apterygidae.At around the size of a domestic chicken, kiwi are by far the smallest living ratites and lay the largest egg in relation to their body size of any species of bird in the world...
into the chalk of the hill. This was done in February and March 1919, by the Canterbury and Otago Engineers Battalions.
The Kiwi is cut out of the chalk hillside, and stands out in contrast from the surrounding vegetation.
The design was executed by Sergeant-Major Percy Cecil Blenkarne of the Education Staff from a sketch of a stuffed kiwi specimen in the British Museum
British Museum
The British Museum is a museum of human history and culture in London. Its collections, which number more than seven million objects, are amongst the largest and most comprehensive in the world and originate from all continents, illustrating and documenting the story of human culture from its...
. The site was surveyed and the design extended on to the site by Sergeant-Major V.T. Low, NZE of the Education Staff.
Size
- The Kiwi's body is 1.5 acres (6,070.3 m²).
- From the Kiwi's feet to the top of its back is 420 feet (128 m).
- The Kiwi's beakBeakThe beak, bill or rostrum is an external anatomical structure of birds which is used for eating and for grooming, manipulating objects, killing prey, fighting, probing for food, courtship and feeding young...
is 150 feet (45.7 m) long. - The letters "N.Z." are 65 feet (19.8 m) long.
After the war
In the years after the Kiwi's creation, the Kiwi Polish CompanyKiwi (shoe polish)
Kiwi is the brand name of a shoe polish, first made in Australia in 1906 and sold in almost 180 countries. Previously owned by the Sara Lee Corporation since 1984, it was sold in 2011 to SC Johnson...
maintained the Kiwi through their offices in London, employing local villagers to do the work. Although it had "little if any advertising value [for us]"; they explained their interest in its upkeep as its being a memorial to the New Zealand troops.
During World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, the Kiwi was camouflaged with leaf mould
Leaf mold
Leaf mold is a form of compost produced by the fungal breakdown of shrub and tree leaves, which are generally too dry, acidic, or low in nitrogen for bacterial decomposition.-Description:...
, out of concerns that German bombers
Luftwaffe
Luftwaffe is a generic German term for an air force. It is also the official name for two of the four historic German air forces, the Wehrmacht air arm founded in 1935 and disbanded in 1946; and the current Bundeswehr air arm founded in 1956....
would use the Kiwi as a navigation marker during their raids over Britain
The Blitz
The Blitz was the sustained strategic bombing of Britain by Nazi Germany between 7 September 1940 and 10 May 1941, during the Second World War. The city of London was bombed by the Luftwaffe for 76 consecutive nights and many towns and cities across the country followed...
. In 1948, the leaf mould was removed by local Boy Scouts
Scout Section (UK)
The Scout section is the direct descendant of the original Scout Patrols which formed The Scout Association of the United Kingdom in 1908. The section is open to both boys and girls between the ages of 10½-14 years, and are now formed into local Scout Troops.Scout Troops form part of a Scout Group...
, and fresh chalk was added. The Scout troop subsequently renamed themselves in the Kiwi's honour.
In the early 1950s, Blenkarne negotiated for the Kiwi to be maintained by the British Army’s 3 (UK) Divisional Headquarters and Signal Regiment following on from the work done by 249 Signal Squadron.
As of 2007, the Kiwi is maintained by the Ministry of Defence
Ministry of Defence (United Kingdom)
The Ministry of Defence is the United Kingdom government department responsible for implementation of government defence policy and is the headquarters of the British Armed Forces....
.